As the effects of a major flu outbreak
continue to spread around the world, Japan has responded to a Mexican request
for emergency supplies to try to contain the problem.

The Japan International Cooperation Agency
(JICA) scheduled two airlifts May 2 and May 4 from its warehouse in Tokyo
to Mexico including medical masks, disposable globes, goggles, disposable
operating gowns and iodine solution following the Mexican government request.

The outbreak, originally designated as
swine flu, but renamed by the World Health Organization (WHO) as Influenza
A (H1N1) surfaced first in Mexico on …

Emergency supplies worth 14 million yen
including tents, blankets, plastic sheeting, water tanks, power generators,
and water purifying equipment have been shipped by the Japan International
Cooperation Agency (JICA) to the state of Tabasco in southeastern Mexico
in the wake of the biggest floods to hit the country in half a century.

Seven rivers, including the Grijalva
and Carrizal, swollen from heavy rains that began in late October, burst
their banks and flooded 15 cities in Tabasco, 80% of which has become immersed
in water.